Royal Icing Butterflies
Delicate butterfly decorations piped with royal icing onto acetate sheets; prepared two days in advance as a continuation of the previous steps.
Story
These exquisite butterfly decorations are piped with royal icing onto acetate sheets, creating a refined flourish for the finished cake. Because the icing needs ample time to set and dry completely before handling, this component should be prepared at least two days ahead. The instructions here continue directly from the preceding stage of the recipe.
Ingredients
cupcakes (flavor of choice)
1 serving
fondant icing or chocolate ganache (fondant icing (p.68) or ganache (p.50))
1 serving
royal icing (remaining portion, white or colored)
as needed
Instructions
1
Prepare the cake
Make the cupcakes and fondant frosting or ganache according to the recipe, cover the cake and let dry.
2
Make the butterfly body
Fill the remaining royal icing into a parchment paper piping bag and cut off the tip. Pipe a thick line down the center of the cake as the body, slightly longer than the butterfly's inner wings, and pipe a small round dot at the top as the head.
3
Attach the wings
Very carefully peel the wings off the acetate sheet (a small flexible spatula can be used for assistance). Place the wings at the edges of the freshly piped body. If possible, position the wings at this angle to create a sense of taking flight.
4
Attach the antennae
Peel off the antennae and stick them onto the top of the butterfly's head. It is recommended to make several spare antennae in case any break.
